Digital Commons Network^™

Huge Abdominopelvic Mass Arising From Cervical Fibroid Around An Infected Cervical Diverticulum: A Very Rare Case And A Review Of Literature, Arpita De, Reva Tripathi, Abhinav Jain, Safia Rana

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Primary uterine diverticula are a very rare congenital anomaly of the uterus with only 21 reported cases. Even rarer is the occurrence of primary cervical diverticula with only six cases reported so far. This is a unique case of a huge abdominopelvic mass arising from cervical fibroid around an infected cervical diverticulum. A 44 year-old, P4L4 came to the OPD with a eighteen weeks size abdomino-pelvic mass. She had a failed surgery 6 months back, attempted to remove the mass. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed a cervical diverticulum which possibly had a pus collection. Relaparotomy was done. It revealed a huge …

Risk Factors Associated With Severe Clostridioides Difficile Infection In Patients With Cancer, Denise Marie A Francisco, Liangliang Zhang, Ying Jiang, Adilene Olvera, Javier Adachi, Eduardo Yepez Guevara, Samuel L Aitken, Kevin W Garey, Christine B Peterson, Kim-Anh Do, Ryan Dillon, Engels N Obi, Robert Jenq, Pablo C Okhuysen

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

INTRODUCTION: Antibiotic use is a risk factor for Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI). Few studies have correlated use of prior antibiotic classes with CDI, microbiome composition, and disease severity in patients with cancer. We hypothesized that previous antibiotic exposure and fecal microbiome composition at time of presentation are risk factors for severe CDI in patients with cancer.

METHODS: This non-interventional, prospective, cohort study examined 200 patients with cancer who had their first episode or first recurrence of CDI. C. difficile was identified using nucleic acid amplification testing. Univariate analysis was used to determine significant risk factors for severe CDI. Fecal microbiome …

Preoperative Tractography Algorithm For Safe Resection Of Tumors Located In The Descending Motor Pathways Zone, Edgar G Ordonez-Rubiano, Jason M Johnson, Nadin Abdalá-Vargas, Oscar F Zorro, Jorge H Marin-Munoz, Ricardo Álvarez-Tobián, Valeria Forlizzi, Carlos Castillo Rangel, Sabino Luzzi, Alvaro Campero, Javier G Patiño-Gómez, Matias Baldoncini

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) tractography facilitates maximal safe resection and optimizes planning to avoid injury during subcortical dissection along descending motor pathways (DMPs). We provide an affordable, safe, and timely algorithm for preoperative DTI motor reconstruction for gliomas adjacent to DMPs.

METHODS: Preoperative DTI reconstructions were extracted from a prospectively acquired registry of glioma resections adjacent to DMPs. The surgeries were performed over a 7-year period. Demographic, clinical, and radiographic data were extracted from patients' electronic medical records.

RESULTS: Nineteen patients (12 male) underwent preoperative tractography between January 1, 2013, and May 31, 2020. The average age was 44.5 …

Targeted Exome-Based Predictors Of Patterns Of Progression Of Colorectal Liver Metastasis After Percutaneous Thermal Ablation, Iwan Paolucci, Yuan-Mao Lin, Yoshikuni Kawaguchi, Harufumi Maki, A Kyle Jones, Marco Calandri, Scott Kopetz, Timothy E Newhook, Kristy K Brock, Jean-Nicolas Vauthey, Bruno C Odisio

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Percutaneous thermal ablation is a curative-intent locoregional therapy (LRT) for selected patients with unresectable colorectal liver metastasis (CLM). Several factors have been identified that contribute to local tumour control after ablation. However, factors contributing to disease progression outside the ablation zone after ablation are poorly understood.

METHODS: In this retrospective study, using next-generation sequencing, we identified genetic biomarkers associated with different patterns of progression following thermal ablation of CLM.

RESULTS: A total of 191 ablation naïve patients between January 2011 and March 2020 were included in the analysis, and 101 had genomic profiling available. Alterations in the TGFβ pathway …

Clinical, Dosimetric, And Reporting Considerations For Y-90 Glass Microspheres In Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Updated 2022 Recommendations From An International Multidisciplinary Working Group, Riad Salem, Siddharth A Padia, Marnix Lam, Carlo Chiesa, Paul Haste, Bruno Sangro, Beau Toskich, Kirk Fowers, Joseph M Herman, S Cheenu Kappadath, Thomas Leung, Daniel Y Sze, Edward Kim, Etienne Garin

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

PURPOSE: In light of recently published clinical reports and trials, the TheraSphere Global Dosimetry Steering Committee (DSC) reconvened to review new data and to update previously published clinical and dosimetric recommendations for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

METHODS: The TheraSphere Global DSC is comprised of health care providers across multiple disciplines involved in the treatment of HCC with yttrium-90 (Y-90) glass microsphere-based transarterial radioembolization (TARE). Literature published between January 2019 and September 2021 was reviewed, discussed, and adjudicated by the Delphi method. Recommendations included in this updated document incorporate both the results of the literature review and the expert …

The Interplay Between Neoantigens And Immune Cells In Sarcomas Treated With Checkpoint Inhibition, Irantzu Anzar, Brandon Malone, Pubudu Samarakoon, Ioannis Vardaxis, Boris Simovski, Hugues Fontenelle, Leonardo A Meza-Zepeda, Richard Stratford, Emily Z Keung, Melissa Burgess, Hussein A Tawbi, Ola Myklebost, Trevor Clancy

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

INTRODUCTION: Sarcomas are comprised of diverse bone and connective tissue tumors with few effective therapeutic options for locally advanced unresectable and/or metastatic disease. Recent advances in immunotherapy, in particular immune checkpoint inhibition (ICI), have shown promising outcomes in several cancer indications. Unfortunately, ICI therapy has provided only modest clinical responses and seems moderately effective in a subset of the diverse subtypes.

METHODS: To explore the immune parameters governing ICI therapy resistance or immune escape, we performed whole exome sequencing (WES) on tumors and their matched normal blood, in addition to RNA-seq from tumors of 31 sarcoma patients treated with pembrolizumab. …

Editorial: Non-Coding Genome And Endocrinology: From Bench To Bedside, Radu Pirlog, Kinga Nemeth, George Adrian Calin

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Lysosomal Tmem9-Lamtor4-Controlled Mtor Signaling Integrity Is Required For Mammary Tumorigenesis, Shengzhe Zhang, Sung Ho Lee, Litong Nie, Yuanjian Huang, Gengyi Zou, Youn-Sang Jung, Sohee Jun, Jie Zhang, Esther M Lien, Junjie Chen, Jae-Il Park

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Severe Radiation-Induced Lymphopenia During Concurrent Chemoradiotherapy For Stage Iii Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: External Validation Of Two Prediction Models, Peter S N Van Rossum, Celia Juan-Cruz, Barbara Stam, Maddalena M G Rossi, Steven H Lin, Azadeh Abravan, José S A Belderbos, Jan-Jakob Sonke

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Severe radiation-induced lymphopenia (RIL) in patients undergoing chemoradiotherapy (CRT) for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is associated with decreased immunotherapy efficacy and survival. At The Christie and MD Anderson Cancer Center (MDACC), prediction models for lymphopenia were developed in lung and esophageal cancer patients, respectively. The aim of this study was to externally validate both models in patients with stage III NSCLC.

METHODS: Patients who underwent concurrent CRT for stage III NSCLC in 2019-2021 were studied. Outcomes were grade ≥3 and grade 4 lymphopenia during CRT. The Christie model predictors for grade ≥3 lymphopenia included age, baseline lymphocyte count, …

Potential Chemoprotective Effects Of Active Ingredients In Salvia Miltiorrhiza On Doxorubicin-Induced Cardiotoxicity: A Systematic Review Of In Vitro And In Vivo Studies, Qingqing Wang, Jiaxian Li, Xuelei Chu, Xiaochen Jiang, Chuanlong Zhang, Fudong Liu, Xiyuan Zhang, Yi Li, Qian Shen, Bo Pang

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Recently, attention has been paid to the protective properties of active ingredients in

METHODS: According to the PRISMA guideline, the current systematic review was conducted in the Web of Science, PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library to collect all relevant

RESULTS: Twenty-two eligible articles were included in this systematic review. Eleven types of active ingredients in

CONCLUSION: This systematic review demonstrated that AISM have chemoprotective effects on DIC

Lysosomes, Curcumin, And Anti-Tumor Effects: How Are They Linked?, Qian Shen, Xue Pan, Yi Li, Junchen Li, Chuanlong Zhang, Xiaochen Jiang, Fudong Liu, Bo Pang

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Curcumin is a natural active ingredient from traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) that has multi-target characteristics to exert extensive pharmacological activities and thus has been applied in the treatment of various diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases, nervous system, and autoimmune disorders. As an important class of membranous organelles in the intracellular membrane system, lysosomes are involved in biological processes such as programmed cell death, cell metabolism, and immune regulation, thus affecting tumor initiation and progression. It has been shown that curcumin can modulate lysosomal function through the aforementioned pathways, thereby affecting tumor proliferation, invasion, metastasis, drug resistance, and immune function. …

Pepsim: T-Cell Cross-Reactivity Prediction Via Comparison Of Peptide Sequence And Peptide-Hla Structure, Sarah Hall-Swan, Jared Slone, Mauricio M Rigo, Dinler A Antunes, Gregory Lizée, Lydia E Kavraki

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

INTRODUCTION: Peptide-HLA class I (pHLA) complexes on the surface of tumor cells can be targeted by cytotoxic T-cells to eliminate tumors, and this is one of the bases for T-cell-based immunotherapies. However, there exist cases where therapeutic T-cells directed towards tumor pHLA complexes may also recognize pHLAs from healthy normal cells. The process where the same T-cell clone recognizes more than one pHLA is referred to as T-cell cross-reactivity and this process is driven mainly by features that make pHLAs similar to each other. T-cell cross-reactivity prediction is critical for designing T-cell-based cancer immunotherapies that are both effective and safe. …

The Cx3cl1-Cx3cr1 Chemokine Axis Can Contribute To Tumor Immune Evasion And Blockade With A Novel Cx3cr1 Monoclonal Antibody Enhances Response To Anti-Pd-1 Immunotherapy, Apoorvi Chaudhri, Xia Bu, Yunfei Wang, Michael Gomez, James A Torchia, Ping Hua, Shao-Hsi Hung, Michael A Davies, Gregory A Lizee, Ulrich Von Andrian, Patrick Hwu, Gordon J Freeman

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

CX3CL1 secreted in the tumor microenvironment serves as a chemoattractant playing a critical role in metastasis of CX3CR1 expressing cancer cells. CX3CR1 can be expressed in both cancer and immune-inhibitory myeloid cells to facilitate their migration. We generated a novel monoclonal antibody against mouse CX3CR1 that binds to CX3CR1 and blocks the CX3CL1-CX3CR1 interaction. We next explored the immune evasion strategies implemented by the CX3CL1-CX3CR1 axis and find that it initiates a resistance program in cancer cells that results in 1) facilitation of tumor cell migration, 2) secretion of soluble mediators to generate a pro-metastatic niche, 3) secretion of soluble …

Stephen Massey: A Career In Visual Neuroscience, Stephen L Mills, David W Marshak

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

This review is a memoir by Dr. Stephen C. Massey's longtime collaborator, Dr. Stephen L. Mills, and written, for the most part, in the first person. It also serves as an introduction to the virtual festschrift to celebrate Dr. Massey's retirement. and. The references cited here are only a few of the highlights of Dr. Massey's distinguished career. A complete list is found here: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=massey+sc+%28retina+or+photoreceptors%29&sort=date.

Nano-Embedded Medical Devices And Delivery Systems In Interventional Radiology, Erin Marie D San Valentin, Allan John R Barcena, Carleigh Klusman, Benjamin Martin, Marites P Melancon

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Nanomaterials research has significantly accelerated the development of the field of vascular and interventional radiology. The incorporation of nanoparticles with unique and functional properties in medical devices and delivery systems has paved the way for the creation of novel diagnostic and therapeutic procedures for various clinical disorders. In this review, we discuss the advancements in the field of interventional radiology and the role of nanotechnology in maximizing the benefits and mitigating the disadvantages of interventional radiology theranostic procedures. Several nanomaterials have been studied to improve the efficacy of interventional radiology interventions, reduce the complications associated with medical devices, improve the …

Parental Effects Of Social Density On Mating Behaviour, Reproductive Success, And Longevity, Shaun Rowlands

School of Biological and Marine Sciences Theses

Organisms can adapt to changing environments, changing their investment strategies to increase their lifetime reproductive success. Contemporary evolutionary theory would suggest that organisms have evolved mechanisms which allow them to assess competition and acquire phenotypic responses that accurately responds to the environment, allowing for rapid changes in response to the social context. Selection would favour organisms which can make nongenetic parental effects, with parents evolving an ability pass on plasticity responses that optimize offspring fitness related traits to suit ecological challenges. In this thesis , I investigate how the social density affects the mating behaviour and offspring production of the …

The Criticality Of Teacher Educator Wellbeing: Reflecting Through Arts-Based Methods, Kristina Turner, Georgina M. Barton Dr, Susanne Garvis, Ellen Larsen

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Teacher educators face many challenges related to workload and government-mandated reforms in Initial Teacher Education programs. Evidence suggests that COVID-19 has exacerbated these challenges as universities must become more cost-effective and improve research outcomes and impact, often resulting in heavier workloads. While these challenges may be faced in other disciplines, teacher educator wellbeing, stress and burnout is an under-researched field, and little is known about if and how teacher educators maintain their wellbeing during times of uncertainty. This collaborative autoethnographic study applied an arts-based research method to explore the wellbeing challenges faced by four Australian teacher educators through the lens …

Transformative Learning Experiences Of The Vocationally Interested And Vocationally Disinterested Pre-Service Teachers In Teacher Training Colleges In Zimbabwe, Esnati Macharaga, Tabitha Grace Mukeredzi

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This article reports on some of the findings from a doctoral research project that explored how the vocationally interested and vocationally disinterested pre-service teachers in selected teacher training colleges in Zimbabwe experienced transformative learning. Through multiple-site case study and qualitative approach within an interpretive paradigm, guided by Mezirow’s ten-phase Transformative Learning Theory, the study sought to understand the pre-service teacher transformative learning experiences. The study employed a multi-modal approach which involved focus group discussions, individual face to face interviews and continuum drawing and discussions to generate data from a purposive sample of 40 participants. Findings suggest that, both vocationally interested …

Participants’ Experiences In Heutagogy Teacher Professional Education In Indonesia, Silvia Handayani, Lewes Peddell, Tony Yeigh

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This study investigated a heutagogy-informed teacher professional education model designed to assist Indonesian teachers in achieving the competencies established by the Indonesian government to address teacher quality issues. The critical concepts of the model include self-determined learning, metacognitive reflection, collaborative learning, and capability development. An embedded design methodology, grounded in pragmatism as the overarching research paradigm, was employed for this investigation. The findings of this study provide significant insights for enhancing teachers’ professional education in Indonesia, particularly in terms of the effectiveness of heutagogy-informed approaches compared to traditional approaches of teacher training, with additional benefits stemming from heutagogy-informed, technology-facilitated learning …

The Influence Of Intrinsic And Extrinsic Factors In A Trap-Neuter-Release (Tnr) Program And Its Effects On Urban And Rural Demographics As A Long-Term Solution For Community Cat Management, Hannah E. Litke

Graduate Research Papers

Trap-neuter-release is a humane alternative solution to aid in decreasing community cat populations. This research paper evaluates the intrinsic and extrinsic factors contributing to successful community cat populations, including reproductive success, transmission of feline and zoonotic diseases, population size, cat immigration between colonies, food availability, and wildlife extinction. Additionally, this research paper evaluates and analyzes TNR's impacts on urban and rural demographics. Furthermore, the paper will evaluate TNR as a long-term solution and its effectiveness in decreasing community cat populations. Lastly, this paper provides suggestions for future research regarding community cat populations.

Editorial: Perspective Challenges For Applied Research In Potato Pathogens: From Molecular Biology To Bioinformatics, Grace Wanjiku Gachara, Rachid Lahlali, Göksel Özer, Hussain Touseef

All Rsif Scholars' Publications

The potato crop is prone to infection by an estimated 50 different categories of pests and diseases whose causal agents are either viruses, bacteria, nematodes, insects, or fungi (Hussain and Singh, 2016; Jansson and Raman, 2019; Mangal et al., 2022; Munyaneza and Bizimungu, 2022). These pathogenic organisms are either soil or air-borne and usually inflict harm on all plant parts. The most commonly encountered diseases that affect potato growth and development include common scab, dry rot, black scurf, late blight, stem canker, premature deaths, and a wide array of nematodes. Soil-based infections that affect the quality of tubers include pink …

Silencing Litigation Through Bankruptcy, Pamela Foohey, Christopher K. Odinet

Scholarly Works

Bankruptcy is being used as a tool for silencing survivors and their families. When faced with claims from multiple plaintiffs related to the same wrongful conduct that can financially or operationally crush the defendant over the long term—a phenomenon we identify as onslaught litigation—defendants harness bankruptcy’s reorganization process to draw together those who allege harm and pressure them into a swift, universal settlement. In doing so, they use the bankruptcy system to deprive survivors of their voice and the public of the truth. This Article identifies this phenomenon and argues that it is time to rein in this destructive use …

Economic And Input-Use Efficiency Of Nitrogen Management Techniques In Non-Irrigated Maize Production, Katie J. Bathke

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

The efficiency of nitrogen (N) management has become a main concern in agricultural cropping systems for understanding the optimal N rate to help producers improve economically and reduce the exhaustion of natural resources environmentally. Nitrogen rates vary both temporally and spatially by the interactions of the soil environment and rainfall through a growing season. Thus, a site-specific approach can further optimize this variability with the understanding of the role soil variability plays in the N rate applied to a non-irrigated field. The objective of this study was to evaluate the various nitrogen treatments for their nutrient use efficiency and economic …

Walt Disney Theme Park Strategic Audit, Joseph Peraino

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Walt Disney theme parks are a part of the Theme parks, Resorts, and Cruise line sector of The Walt Disney Company. Despite many world changes to its environment throughout the years, Disney has remained one of the leaders in the entertainment industry. This Strategic audit will use PESTEL and Porter’s Five Forces to analyze the industry as a framework to understand how Disney can remain a strong competitor in its changing environment and industry.

The Department Of Transportation’S Failures In Regulating Emotional Support Animals, Jillian Doughty

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

In the past decade, the number of emotional support animals being used to treat a wide array of mental and emotional disorders has multiplied exponentially. This increase has been met with mixed reactions in the context of air travel. While some passengers are thrilled to sit next to a dog on their flight, others are frustrated due to the belief passengers with emotional support animals are exploiting a loophole to travel with their pet for free. Regardless of the differing perceptions, emotional support animals are a valid, affordable way to treat mental health illnesses without incurring negative side effects associated …

Ant 211: Cultural Anthropology Summer -Asynchronous Online Syllabus, Antonia M. Santangelo

Open Educational Resources

Syllabus for ANT 211: Cultural Anthropology using Open Educational Resources. This is designed for a summer session, asynchronous online course.

On Warrants & Waiting: Electronic Warrants & The Fourth Amendment, Tracy Hresko Pearl

Faculty Articles

Police use of electronic warrant (“e-warrant”) technology has increased significantly in recent years. E-warrant technology allows law enforcement to submit, and magistrate judges to review and approve, warrant applications on computers, smartphones, and tablets, often without any direct communication. Police officers report that they favor e-warrants over their traditional counterparts because they save officers a significant amount of time in applying for warrants by eliminating the need to appear in-person before a magistrate. Legal scholars have almost uniformly praised e-warrant technology, as well, arguing that use of these systems will increase the number of warrants issued throughout the United States …

Remediating Injustices For Black Land Loss: Taking The Next Step To Protect Heirs' Property, Phyllis C. Taite

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

Welfare V. Wealthfare: The Illusion Of Equality In Tax Policy, Phyllis C. Taite

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

Nutrient Intakes, Compliance With Recommendations And Key Sources In Women Of Child-Bearing Age (18-50 Y) In Ireland, Abigail O' Mahony

Theses

Women’s pre-conceptional health (including nutritional status) is important for both the health of the individual themselves and also for the lifelong health of any occurring offspring. However, it has been estimated that up to 50% of pregnancies are unplanned, thus optimal nutritional status is important for all women of child-bearing age (WCBA) not just those with pregnancy intentions. Despite the accumulation of evidence of the importance of nutritional status at this life-stage, nutrient recommendations for WCBA for the most part don’t differ from recommendations for other population groups. The notable exception to this is that all WCBA are recommended to …